Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 1,355 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,019,134 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 1,355 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.83% of Williams-Sonoma worth $188,746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,201 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,360,384,000 after buying an additional 3,695,837 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $825,588,000 after acquiring an additional 2,777,339 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $418,223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393,436 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $326,931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145,410 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $160,537,000 after purchasing an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total value of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM traded down $14.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $195.03. 1,702,748 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,281,432. The company has a market capitalization of $24.01 billion, a PE ratio of 23.07, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.79. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $200.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $165.64. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $110.93 and a one year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on WSM shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $172.34.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.